Libya seeks to calm Sharia fears

The head of Libya’s transitional government tried to reassure Western powers which helped topple Muammar Gaddafi that the country’s new leaders were moderate Muslims, after a speech that emphasised the Islamisation of Libya.

Just as in neighbouring Tunisia and Egypt, Islamists have emerged from yet another Arab Spring uprising as the most powerful group in the country. How far they will go will be decided at the ballot box – in Tunisia this week, in Egypt in November and in Libya within eight months.